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Show POBTIsASD, DALLES A"D SALT laAltLE B. K. Id tho proceedings of the Oregon legislature, which we find reported in the "Bulletin," we observe that on September 2-lth a bill granting State aid to assist in the construction of the Portland, Dalles and Salt Lake railroad was reported, with amendments, to the house by the committee having charge of the hill, and that the amendments were adopted and the bill ordered printed. What the nature of the bill is, as to the aid proposed to be ex tended in behalf of the enterprise, we are unable to state, but the committee in their report stated that "early action upon the bill would greatly facilitate arrangements for an early commence-: ment of the work, and satisfied of this, I the committee had accepted for the grant such other appropriations as may be made during the present session." In the report, the committee presented in an able manner the importance of the early construction of this road, re-carding re-carding it as of the utmost importance im-portance to the people of Oregon, inasmuch as it would open the Columbia Col-umbia river to competition and reduce the cost of transportation at least fifty per cenL below the present exorbitant rates, and break up the monopoly, of that river, whose aims and objects, as stated by the committee, are to centralize cen-tralize all commercial lines of the Pacilio northwest on Paget Sound. The committee further state that, in their opinion, the provisions of the bill for opening (ho navigation of the Columbia river, to competition, would go far towards compensating the State for aid extended to the road; while other provisions of the bill were equally important and vital to the agricultural and commercial prosperity of Oregon. They call attention to the projects of the northern Pacific oompany in their endcavors to divert the trade of eastern Oregon, Washington Territory and Idaho to their proposed terminal oity on Paget Sound; and state the importance impor-tance to Oregon and Portland, her great commercial metropolis and railroad rail-road centre, of securing her present and regaining her lost trade, which the committee believe"the provisions of the bill were intended to and undoubtedly undoubt-edly would accomplish." We have not seen the lull report but, judging from the synopsis published in the "Bulletin," the committee were undoubtedly un-doubtedly alive to the great benefits that would accrue to the State of Oregon Ore-gon from an early construction of the road; and, taking a comprehensive vtew of the situation, they were prompt action on the part of the legislature legis-lature in extending the aid asked for by the company. If, as the oommittce say in their report, the passage ot the bill will faciiiULe the arrangements for an early commencement of the work, we hope the friends of the measure may press it on the attention of the legislature, and secure its early pass-ago. pass-ago. But as ihe construction of such a road would certainly not be to the interest of Mr. Ben Holladay, oq account ac-count of it being a shorter and more direot line between Portland and the east, than his Oregon and California road, we shall expect to hear of his using his influence against the measure. We nope, however, that his selfishness selfish-ness may not militate to the serious disadvantage of the bill now pending; and that the members of the Oregon legislature, appreciating the importance import-ance of tho early construction of the proposed road, will aotin the interests of their constituents, and of their State, and by bo doing Idaho may second their efforts in behalf of this important enterprise. We shall anxiously anx-iously await the news of the fate of this bill in the Oregon legislature, believing be-lieving that its passage portends the early commencement of work on this road, and ita defeat delaying for years completion of a line that sooner or later must be built "Idaho World." |